Game of the Year 2012

Game of The Year 2012

Game of The Year 2012

There's been a lot of people saying lately that 2012 has not been a good year for games; for PC games in particularly. If you ask us though then those people are talking rubbish - and that's a judgement borne out in the release of games such as Dishonored, Natural Selection 2, FTL: Faster Than Light and many more.

In fact, it's worth nothing that 2012 hasn't just been a good year overall - it's actually been an especially good year for new IPs and indie developers. After years of what's felt like needless sequel-farming and tired retakes on old ideas, we've finally seen some properly new releases. It's even driven some of us to wonder if we aren't reliving a golden age of PC gaming...

Of course, it's not all been good news this year. There's been plenty of squabbles and controversies breaking out in the games industry - furores thrown up by the mention of Borderlands 2's 'Girlfriend Mode' or the depiction of The Saints in Hitman: Absolution. While some suppose that we're living through a golden age again, others may think we're living through a far cruder period...

But of all the games released this year, which ones really mattered to you and what are the sort of experiences you want to see more movement towards in the future? Have the controversies and scandals shaped your opinion negatively or are you more impressed with the originality of a few?

That's how we framed the question for the 2012 Game of the Year voting, giving you a list of the best and most popular titles to choose from and an open forum within which to discuss your favourites.

What answers did you collectively settle on? It's time to find out. Flip the page to check out the countdown of Bit-tech's Top Five Games of 2012...